1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a manufacturing method for a grip article, such as an automobile assist or seat grip, or for an article which has a foamed layer and has a soft feel, such as the cover of a console box or an arm rest of an automobile.
2. Description of Related Art
Grip articles for supporting passengers have been known to be provided in the interior of automobiles or the like. An assist grip, as shown in FIG. 4, may be secured, for example, above the windows of the rear or the front passenger seats. This assist grip is typically composed of a grip portion 100, which the passenger grasps to support himself, and an attaching portion 101 extending from both ends of the grip portion 100. The assist grip is secured to the automobile by fixing the attaching portion 101 to the body of the automobile by mechanical fixing means such as screws.
Although a resin-made molded product has been used previously to construct such an assist grip, the resin-made product does not have an attractive appearance and feels hard when grasped. Therefore, assist grips having foamed layers have been used in recent years. Such an assist grip is composed of a resin-made base portion, a foamed layer coated on a part of the base portion, and an outer layer coated on a surface of the foamed layer. The foamed layer is generally provided at the center portion of the assist grip. The base portion projects from both ends of the grip portion and constitutes attaching portions. Generally, the surface of the grip portion is continuous with the surfaces of the attaching portions, and, as one views the assist grip, each surface is substantially level with the other.
A manufacturing method for an assist grip having a foamed layer such as is described above is generally as follows: First, the base portion, including a portion having a small diameter, is provided. Next, a flexible material, made of a foamed layer and an outer layer, separately formed by a laminate method or the like, is wound around the small diameter portion. The ends of the flexible material are then sewn to form the grip portion.
As regards the cover of a console box, an outer layer material constructed of laminated vinyl chloride is shaped, by a vacuum forming method or the like, on a surface of a foamed sheet, such as a urethane foam. The shaped outer layer material is then disposed in a mold. An injection molding method or the like is employed to integrally form a reinforcing layer on a reverse surface of the outer layer material. The reinforcing layer thus retains the shape of the outer layer material. Thereafter, an attaching plate (base plate), formed separately, is secured to the reinforcing layer by means of screws or similar means. One end of the attaching plate is then swingably secured to the console box so as to function as the cover.
Moreover, it is undesirable for the grip portion of the grip article discussed above to shift relative to an axial or a circumferential direction of the base portion. For this reason the foamed layer has been secured to the base portion by providing a bonding layer between the foamed layer and the base portion. This manufacturing method of a conventional grip article having a foamed layer thus requires a bonding operation as well as sewing processes and thereby greatly increases the manufacturing man-hours.
Moreover, even if the size of the console box is small, the cover of the console box is typically affixed at a minimum of ten positions. Increasing the number of parts further increases manufacturing costs and decreases productivity. Another shortcoming is that when the cover is opened, the screw heads of the known cover arrangements are visibly, which visibility detracts from the appearance of the cover.